In its second year, the Young Entrepreneurs Academy of Baton Rouge is becoming more diverse in its geographic makeup of students, part of a concerted effort it hopes to continue through the years to come.
This year’s class features 29 high school students who will launch 22 businesses in Louisiana within the next couple of months. They come from a mix of 17 public, private, charter and home schools (compared to last year’s 15) in East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, West Feliciana and Ascension parishes, including students from Zachary and Central, which were not represented before.
Extending YEABR’s reach became possible once organizers began selecting ambassadors from more schools to promote the program to their students, says Deborah Sternberg, the former Starmount Life Insurance president who brought the national program to Baton Rouge in 2018.
“We’ve made a lot of headway into schools, visiting principals and teachers, making sure they understand the opportunities,” she says. “The more we can get in front of people and talk with them about it, the more interest we see.”
It’s translated to more applications from local high school students: Whereas 40 students applied for the inaugural program (26 of which were selected), 64 applied this time.
While they can’t disclose their business ideas yet, Sternberg says the ideas coming this year have already been vastly different. Some of the broader categories they fall under include culinary concepts, apparel and widgets.
“Clearly, there’s a need for it,” Sternberg says. “It’s a different kind of generation—younger people want flexible schedules, they want to build themselves, and they see the opportunity to be builders.”
This year’s class has been meeting since September, learning about intellectual property from a Jones Walker attorney, business insurance from Bancorp South, advertising and public relations from Lamar Advertising, and entrepreneurship from Brandon Landry of Walk-On’s, among other lessons.
A CEO roundtable will take place Jan. 29, shortly before the students register their businesses with the Secretary of State’s office in February. Students will then compete for the top level of seed funding from a panel of local investors at a March 4 pitch night. They graduate April 21 with three credit hours from the E.J. Ourso College of Business.
